MBSS Site Summary for: PRUT-115-R-2009

Site Photos

Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-115-R-2009-1 (Opens in a new window) Field photo showing stream conditions at site PRUT-115-R-2009-2 (Opens in a new window)

Located on UT Henson Creek in the Potomac River U tidal watershed, 8-digit code: 02140201.
This stream was visited in the spring on 3/30/2009 and again in the summer on 6/15/2009.

Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) Results:

An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) is a scientific tool used to identify and classify stream health. An IBI associates anthropogenic influences on a stream or with biological condition in the stream, and is formulated using data developed from biosurveys.
Details on the development and application of MBSS IBIs are in this document.
Fish IBI Poor - 1.3 / 5.0
Benthic IBI Poor - 2.1 / 5.0

Land Use

Land use can provide important information for determining stream health.
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Catchment area 431 acres A highly channelized urban stream with concrete banks. An example of a highly channelized urban stream.
Urban Land Use 67.1 %
Agricultural Land Use 0.9 %
Forested Land Use 31.1 %


Stream showing woody debris, logs, and rocky substrate.
An example of woody debris in a stream.

Physical Stream Habitat
Instream Habitat 7/20 (Marginal)
Epifaunal Substrate 8/20 (Marginal)
Velocity/Depth Diversity 9/20 (Marginal)
Pool Quality
Pool Extent = 53 meters 		7/20 (Marginal)
Riffle Quality
Riffle Extent = 37 meters 		9/20 (Marginal)
Shading 90 %
Embeddedness 60 %
The embeddedness, a measure of silt on the stream bottom, was 60%. This is relatively high, and may exclude some biota.


Stream Water Quality:
Water temperature 18.4 ° C
Dissolved oxygen (DO) 8.9 mg/L
pH (lab) 7.09
Conductivity 235 µmho/cm
Alkalinity
(acid neutralizing capacity) 		352.5 µeq/L
Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) 1.7454 mg/L

Biological Stream Condition:

Surveys of the organisms living within a stream can give indications of stream health. Species richness, or the number of different species present, as well as indicator species (species whose presence, absence or abundance can serve as a measure of environmental conditions) are informative for stream health. 		Close-up of a mayfly indicator species.

Fish Survey Results:
The following 2 fish species were collected.
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Common name Count
Blacknose Dace 79
Creek Chub 22
Biologists sampling fish communities.
Electrofishing to sample fish communities.

Amphibians and Reptiles:
Northern Green Frog

Crayfish:
No crayfish noted.

Exotic Plants:
Garlic Mustard
Multiflora Rose
 

Benthic Macroinvertebrates:
Sensitive taxa: Green, Tolerant: Red, Intermediate: Gold.
Genus/Family Common Name Count
Orthocladius Non-Biting Midges 63
Hydrobaenus Midge 12
Orthocladiinae Midge 12
Tvetenia Non-Biting Midges 6
Chaetocladius Non-Biting Midges 4
Cricotopus Non-Biting Midges 2
Polypedilum Non-Biting Midges 2
Thienemannimyia Group Non-Biting Midges 2
Nanocladius Non-Biting Midges 1
Hydropsyche Net-Spinning Caddisfly 1
Physa Air-Breathing Freshwater Snail 1
Calopteryx Damselfly 1
Ironoquia Northern Caddisfly 1
Kick net sampling for macroinvertebrates.
Sampling with a kick net.

Information disclaimer: The information and data on this page is for guidance and general planning purposes only. It should not be used to make decisions on specific matters.